On the night when senior guard Micah Peavy was honored for scoring his 1,000th point against the Syracuse Orange, the Georgetown Hoyas used a second half defensive masterclass to defeat the Creighton Blue Jays 81-57.
Coming off a tough road win against Syracuse on the road, the Hoyas United without star sophomore point guard Malik Mack and snatched the life out of the Blue Jays.
Coming off a 27-point performance where he hit 4-6 from three, junior guard Jayden Epps followed that up with a team high 21 points and 83% from behind the arc. When asked after the game if he believes every shot is going in postgame, he responded “Yeah, all the time. No matter if I’m shooting 30 percent or 20 percent, I know how much work I put in, I know the hours I put in the gym on my shot, so I'm always going to be a Confident shooter.” Georgetown Head Coach Ed Cooley expounded on the point that Epps preparation over the last couple weeks didn’t go unnoticed from himself and the coaching staff. They appreciate how assertive he was on staying locked in and being the leader he is.
Micah Peavy is one of the best defenders in the country. His on-ball pressure and ability to slide his feet is unmatched. With his 6’8” frame along with underrated athleticism, he’s able to frustrate ball handlers on any given night. Creighton point guard Steven Ashworth hit five threes in the first half and Peavy took the assignment in the second and completely took Ashworth out of the game. His tenacious energy led to four second half steals that led to easy dunks on offense. Demoralizing buckets that created real separation on the scoreboard. When asked postgame if Peavy felt his length bothered Ashworth he responded “Yes, I believe so. We knew we had a tough guard with Ashworth and I wanted to take that challenge and guard him. After I got my first steal, I just felt I could keep going.”
The Hoyas used an 8-0 Run to end the first half and Coach Cooley believed that was the most pivotal stretch of the game. This run led to Georgetown coming out taking a double-digit lead halfway through the second half and caused the Blue Jays to use two early timeouts with large deficits. The Hoyas never surrendered the lead and cruised to a 24-point victory.
Mack was a last-minute scratch from today's game with a lower body injury. Coach Cooley made sure to have him with the coaches locked in during the game. When asked postgame what coach thought about Mack’s leadership from the sideline, he stated “Right before the ball went up, I told him go sit up there with our coaches. Your voice has to be very demanding and you can be a great leader when you’re not playing. Very proud with how he handled himself.”
Sophomore Hoya guard Curtis Williams Jr. Only scored eight points in his entire Georgetown career. He had eight in the first half finished the game with 12 points. This was the perfect example of capitalizing on the opportunity when your number is called. The former Louisville Cardinal hit some timely shots that kept momentum in Georgetown’s favor.
Coach Cooley was adamant in giving both the Williams their flowers. Hometown faithful Caleb Williams got his first start today and coach was pleased with his effort. “He’s a freshman, first college start at home, how exciting is that? I hope everybody in the DMV we recruit sees that we’re going to play you so come on and join our family. We want all the best players to stay here in the DMV.”
Both Epps and freshman forward Thomas Sorber left the game in the second half with minor injuries. Epps would return to the game shortly after, followed by Sorber towards the end of the second half. Minor scares for both players and should see them play on Sunday evening.
The Hoyas improve to 9-2 on the season and will travel to Newark, New Jersey for a Sunday night matchup against the Seton Hall Pirates.
